Cecils laurepuech



(NS Model.)` v

C. L. PUEH. PROCESS 0F AND APPARATUS FOR UNHAIRING SKINS. Nm519,345. APatented May 8, 1894..

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WATER e n WITNESSES:

l UNITED y STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CECILE LAURE PUECH, or MAZAMET, FRANCE,

PROCESS OF AND APPARATUS FOR UNHAIRINGSKINS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 519,345, dated May 8,1894.V

Application filed October 31l 1893. Serial No. 489,624. (No model.)

To all whom it may aon/cern:`

Be it known'that I, CECILE LAURE pouse i PIERRE PUECH, a citizen of theFrench Republic, residing in Mazamet, (Tarm) France, have inventedcertain new and useful Improvements 1n Processes of and Apparatus forUnhairing Skins, of which the following is a specification. i

This invention provides an improved means for the removal of hair orwoolfrom cow, calf, sheep, lamb, or other skins. Heretofore three methodshave been practiced for this purpose, which I will briefly describ t lhefirst and oldest method is to treat the skl'nsby means` of a depilatorybath otl water, to which is added lime, orpiment, dac., a system whichdetaches the hair or wool at the end of four or tive days and producesgood leather, but spoils the wool or hair.

T he second mode consists in spreading a depilatory chemical on theflesh side of the skin, whereupon the skins are piled up, and after fiveor six hours the hair or wool is ready to be detached. This systemproduces generally a good leather, butthe chemical employed being a verystrong mordant attacks the wool, and 1n spite of the utmost care,deteriorates it and' reduces its value; this means furthermore 1scostlybecause of the expense of the chemicals, and because of the greatamount of labor `required for unhairing the skins.

`The third process called sweating is performed in a hermetically closedroom or sweating chamber, in which the skins after having been soakedare hung up by the hind quarters about three inches apart on hooks pro-`vided for that purpose. A space of about three feet is left betweenthetop of the beams sustaining the skins and the ceiling, to permit theammonia which is generated to rise up above the skins. The room containsordinarily from four hundred to ve hundred skins, and when the wet skinshave been hung up the room is closed and fermentation takes place,whichloosens the wool or hair in the course of two`or three days insummer or` eight or ten days in Winter. This method 1nJures the wool orhair less than the precedmg ones, though the wool commonly betheprincipal disadvantage of this method is the great danger it involves ofruining great numbers of` skins, since it is difficult to determine theright moment when the skins should be removed and scraped, and when thismoment occurs the operation must be performed at once, since a delaysometimes of only one hour will entirely spoil the skins by reason oftheir prolonged exposure in the chamber. The system consequentlyrequires many skilled workmen always ready, besides a very skillful andhigh-priced foreman. As it is only by the fermentation that the poresare opened and the wool or hair detached, it results from thisfermentation that a large quantity of ammonia gas is produced, whichquickly reddens the leather, and renders it very diiicult to find theexact moment when the chamber should be opened. Not only is this ammoniavery dangerous for the leather, but this gas is also even 4moredangerous tothe health of the workmen, since when the chamber is openedthe gas so actively `attacks the eyes of the workmen that they areobliged to retire during eightor ten minutes until the gas shall havepassed away. The difficulties attending this process' are so great thatmany manufacturers preiter to wholly suspend operations during thewarmest summer months and the coldest months of winter, becauseit isduring both these. times that the process presents the utmostdiiiiculty, the skins heating too quickly in summer and too slowly inwinter.

The `defects and difiiculties of the methods heretofore in use being nowunderstood, I will proceed to describe the means atwhich I have arrivedafter numerous and costly experiments for overcoming the objectionshitherto encountered, and rendering the depilatory operation verysimple, easy and safe. According to my invention I employ insteadof thesweating chamber, a sprinkling chamber or spray room, the proportions ofwhich may be similar to those of a sweating chamber, and which in likemanner isprovided with beams having hooks for hanging up the skins. Inthis Chamber I provide a 5o comes yellow and is somewhat weakened, but

pipe for supplying it with water under pressroo ure, and a valve forcontrolling the ow of Water, so` that by the action of these parts thereis created in the upper part of the chamber, and above the skins, a finespray or rain which is thrown into all parts of the chamber, and fallsupon the skins, trickling continually down over them, and serving thusto keep them completely saturated and soaked with water, and at thesametime washed and cleansed. The water which falls on the floor ispermitted to run away through suitable gutters and is conducted out ofthe chamber.v By this treatment the pores are opened and the Wool orhair loosened in the course of forty-eight hours, and upon the opening`ofthe room there is no bad odor, and both the wool and leather of theskins are in perfect condition, since the loosening of the wool has beenaccomplished without any apparent fermentation, and any ammonia or otherdeleterious matter which may have been generated and given off, has beenabsorbed and washed off an'd carried away by the continual tricklingstreams of water. Since no perceptible fermentation has occurred and noammonia eX- ists in the chamber, no harm can ensue from leaving theskins in the room for even one or two days after the wool is loosenedbefore removing them and scraping them, or otherwise mechanicallydetaching or pulling off the loosened wool. In this last respect myprocess effects a momentous improvement over the old sweating process,wherein a delay of one hour would suffice often to ruin all the skins,whereas by my method the scraping of the skins may be done at theconvenience of the manufacturer, or whenever men can be spared, andwithout incurring any risk of damage by the delay.

The accompanying drawings illustrate one suitable construction ofsprinkling chamber for carrying out my invention, being that which Ibelieve to be best adapted for the purpose.

Figurel isa vertical transverse section, and Fig. 2 is a verticallongitudinal section.

The room or chamber uiay be built in any suitable way, of wood, masonryor otherwise, and is provided with longitudinal beams ct d having hooksat intervals of about three inches apart from which to hang by the hindquarters the skins b b, to be unhaired. Above the beams, andconsequently above the skins, is left a free or open space A for thedissemination of the spray.

To generate the spray, I provide a spray nozzle or sprinkler B, mountedrotatively on the upturned end C of a water-pipe C, which enters thechamber from the outside, and which outside the chamber has a valve cfor controlling the flow of water. The spraynozz'le B has obliquedelivery jets, and is preferably free to rotate on the pipe after themanner of the rotaryl lawn sprinklers commonly employed for wateringlawns with a fine spray. Any kind of nozzle or sprinkler, however, whichwill thoroughly subdivide or led off by a pipe F2.

atomize'the water and throw it into all parts of the chamber A may beemployed. The water should enter under suflicient pressure to insure therotation or other proper spraying action of the spraying nozzle.

D is the door through which the Workmen enter the chamber to bring inandremove the skins. l

For removing the water which continually drips to the oor, the latter isprovided with a gutter or channel d which may extend all around it, andwhich leads at one'side to a water outlet e, Fig. l.

After the skins to be iinhaired have been hung up in the chamber, thedoorD is closed andthe water valve c opened to admit water underpressure to the spray-nozzle, by which it is atomized, and the entireupper chamber A filled with spray, which-ceaselessly falls upon theskins and trickles down over them, keeping them thoroughly soaked, andcontinually washing the skins and the wool, and falling oit from theskins onto the floor, from which the water runs away by the gutters dand outlet e. The process is kept up continuously or practically so forforty-eight hours or thereabout until the desired result of looseningthe hair or wool is accomplished. My invention, however, is not limitedto the absolute continuity of the sprinklingoperation, since theadmission of water may at any time be suspended to enable a person toentei the chamber and examine the condition of the skins, or for anyother purpose.

The continual sprinkling serves4 to keep the chamber at a uniformtemperature such as 1s necessary for the good progress of the process,the average temperature being from 15o to 18 centigrade; by varying thetemperature of the water it is easy for the foreman to control thetemperature of the room to maintain it at the point which is mostdesirable. To enable him to read the temperature, a windowf is placed atsome suitable location, inside of which a thermometer gis placed so thathe' may see it from the outside.

In order that the process may be carried on as readily in winter as insummer, any suitable means may be provided for elevating the temperatureof the room, so that the unhairing shall be done as quickly as insummer. I prefer for this purpose to place in some corner of the room asmall receptacle, either of wood, iron or other material, which isfilled with water and heated by any suitable means. I have shown in Fig.l a cask or vat E of water, within which is placed a steam coil F, whichis closed, and is supplied with steam through a valved pipe F', so thatby turning steam into this coil the water is heated and boils. Thecondensation may be Thus the steam is not discharged from the coil intothe room, or even into the water. The boiling water disengages a warmvapor, which moderates the tempei'ature of the falling water, while onthe other hand the overheating of the skins is IIO j accomplishes theunhairing in less time than formerly, and without the slightest injuryto `either the wool or the leather, while the unhairing is accomplishedwith theminimum of expense and without any risk Whatever.

My invention has no reference to the particular means employed fordetaching the loosened wool or hair from the skins, for which purposeany known mechanical (as distinguished from chemical) process maybeapplied, such as scraping, beating, the use of powerful jets of water,`&c.

I claim as my invention the tollowing-de fined novel features,substantially as hereinbefore specified, namely:

l. The process of loosening the hair or wool from skins consisting insuspending them in a closed chamber, maintaining thereina temperatureapproximating 15 to 18 centgrade and there subjecting them to a spray ofwater Wh ich falls on the skins and trickles over them, thereby openingtheir pores by keeping them moist, and simultaneously washing them,wherebythe wool or hair is loosened without apparent fermentation andall ammo- 3o niacal gas is absorbed and washed away..

2. The process of unhairmg` skins consisting in suspending them inaclosed chamber,

and there subjecting them to a spray of water which falls on the skinsand trickles over them, and at the Sametime maintaining the chambersuciently warmed by disengaging therein `the vapor from a bath of heatedwaj ter and subsequently mechanically removing the loosened wool orhair.

3. An apparatus for unhairing skins, con-

